FACTBOX-UK local government elections: Key results and ones to watch

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(Adds Trafford result)

LONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - Early results from local government elections in England painted a mixed picture for Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative Party, showing some gains in Brexit-supporting areas, although key results in London were yet to be declared.

Below is a list of some facts about the elections and five council results that will set the tone for the overall outcome.

- Councils are the local government authorities with responsibility for providing public services that affect residents’ day-to-day lives. They are made up of varying numbers of seats, and run by any party that has an overall majority of those seats.

- More than 4,000 council seats will be contested, determining the make-up of 150 councils. More than 40 percent of the seats are in London.

- All 32 London boroughs are electing their whole councils. Some councils outside London are only electing one third of their councillors this time around.

- Unlike national elections that decide seats in parliament, or the 2016 EU referendum, Thursday’s elections are open to EU nationals registered and resident in electing boroughs.

RESULTS

PETERBOROUGH - RESULT: CONSERVATIVE GAIN

The Conservatives won the single extra seat they needed to take overall control of this council which represents an eastern area that voted 61 percent to leave the EU. The anti-EU UK Independence Party lost its only seat on the council as part of a broader collapse in the party’s vote.

TRAFFORD - RESULT: CONSERVATIVE LOSS

A council in the northern city of Manchester which had been the Conservatives’ highly-prized foothold in a region dominated by the opposition Labour Party. The Conservatives lost five seats, while Labour gained four, leaving the council without a single party in overall control.

YET TO BE DECLARED

WESTMINSTER - This Conservative-held borough in the heart of London’s political district would have huge symbolic value if it switched to Labour. It has been run by the Conservatives since its creation in 1964, and, according to polling analysis, it would require an 8.8 percent swing to Labour to change that.

WANDSWORTH - A Conservative borough in southwest London with a tradition of low taxes dating back to former prime minister Margaret Thatcher. Labour has not had control of the council since 1978. Residents voted 75 percent in favour of remaining in the EU, compared with 48 percent nationwide.

BARNET - A London borough which Labour has never won since its creation in 1974, Barnet is a big target this time around. The result here will illustrate the extent to which a row between Labour and the Jewish community over the handling of anti-Semitism in the party has affected the public mood. Barnet has the highest proportion of Jewish residents in England at 15.5 percent, according to the latest census data. (Reporting by William James Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Darren Schuettler)